Combined vehicle stop and directional signal



April 20, 1948. HALLMAN 2,440,011

COMBINED VEHICLE STOP AND DIRECTIONAL SIGNAL Filed Aug. 24, 1945 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENATJIVQ.

ERR: B HALLMHH XZMMQ ATTORNEY.

April 20, 1948. E. B. HALLMAN COMBINED VEHICLE STOP AND DIRECTIONAL SIGNAL Filed Aug. 24, 1945 2' Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

ATT RH EY v Patented Apr; 20,1948

cwvmm mE wL s orm QIHEQTIONAIE .SIGNAP Eric B.-. Hellman, Philadelphia, Pe assigns; to leqmr ev Service. M u u n Compan Bhilg clelphia Pe, a corporation '1 if Pennsylirajrlliz Aretisetite sweet 2 tie N 61 368 I 'Ifhis invention relates generally to auxiliary larnggs and more particularly to an improved construction of an electrically illuminated signalling lernp which is adapted to be mounted upon the front and rear of automotive vehicles} Among the principal objects of the present inventionis to provide a signal ram unit of simple and inexpensive construction and of such design the'tit nrayhe reed'lvedajbted to the surfece contq t h vth tlt e it n "t i tq t h u it h s mv dtt r r tit 'c t Such ens er l s tt i i e t' t 1 r tt talc ed either t the front 1 t j the e i bbqy i et t e hicl A trth r Q eet is t9 trtv d e tieee am n t d si ne to e nter a l fi t d 1 beth s p nd. tre tiqnri d etin mp s?! t t a e t nal cove late, o onetll jem ter a fitt wi h gh -t nsm tt nels, Q SW1 rt tti e h pe and dismsitiqn o P u e heefi t fof a. ir c naler ow when the 1% t a e it Other qbjectsand adran leg sw the 'nlvention w l ap ea re fully ht t l net t. be n understo od'that the present inven .fco sists srr stentielly in the com in ti n con niet q .L. r tion and reletivearraneernent of perts ll as will beudesc bed n detail her inafte es's hown' in th t me ri g drtwines and fin ll in i out intheeppended claims;

In the accompanying drawings,

i ure 1 is a plan v ew of the. i htin unit of the presentinvention; 1

F gure 2 is alo gitudinel seqt nnal v ewthenept.

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ure fi i sta P1 tnviewof the unit With the n.1,.rith ree mo fidfi L j Ei te is time; ew the paq e ft-Ye mgmp r; r H r. t t en tereqv eW-s respv ti 91y, oft i 1 t an mit in e 't 'ef ti es Witte tel. .eltmset' 9f t e 11t t r e ttt l tet et ewessit w ll e-ebtetv. s. tha we. ghtin un t the re st e r ttb ttm' tl a title Ease membe t 9 f 'se ee ti ttt 't t it ttttfl vete s inttese t titsr befits 1 generally elongated forin hsvifigssieursas fenre 1015 an exploded viswrsh will thes ??-v (c m-pegs) which converge to. provide a pointed. forward end portion H, the rear edge I-2 of the unit being generally square to the parallel side edges thereof. Aseppeers most clearly in Figure 2, the base member H1 is curved longitudinally to correspond'to'the curvature of the vehicle body to which "it is adapted to besecured, it being im portant to note in this connection that the opposite longitudinally extending sides of the mem her are respectively provided with relatively deep flanges 13-43, the free edges of which ere curved to the contour of the vehicle body surf ace. By g'rindihg or otherwise finishing these free edges of the si'de flanges l3-'-]3, the contour thereof riiaylb e veriede's desired, as indicated by the dot and dashlines of Figu'r'lO', to 'snug1y'fit the hase to the'.exactcurveturfof th'elbody towhic'h the unit is designed tdbllatta ched. 55st f iem r Wit ii 1 dP a t 'tti t videtfw '55 w hin? ar di t d thttm t et qtil e i twis r tt r t mt t. e t wet t e diietti ind at n lam t t t it h s la ps b nest qrted i c n.- ventional manner within"th eir respective lamp tt ts Men The Qent 'p 'tbt- Wel is et t tttlie new. t e s J trenotm l f se ed iwtll t ew-"the ctt d pe r lan Of the betev em'ben. ttlt the v tatetime that the op: t qt t ewl -lo e ed tfitt ent ettte t e bo tom lend it. the t ee edge Q t e id t flanges 1-43 t 'tqerovindetfsir r d n off o a d d es e e t e te qt he e i withett i t nte b th ttt m 9f the tmp W 1 The base m mbe it. mar inally ri td with. es e l ei ed se t ,zflrthis. S at bein edente .tq-l e v'e' at p peter me b Qt he fo m hown m earlrinfisufis 7 and Q- rtf r any! thi to over 'r'n'emher s i t e rm Q a sheet meta stempin al hou h maybe termed 6t ot r enesmem ttetia T is p vet '1" is iers h .len' t id nell n tee ve sel ni .r0; .t ,ed t ltr fi tqnte insl o t rm an d nose w ich icorresptnds in hape w t hat pit rf bnt-e flfr elttiq f bi, h b emembr}. n th ease of the a tt tmb t th ea end f e en co e m mb r ext nd square y ecross the perallel side edges thereof for engage-l ment with the rear portion Zit of the marginal thot s e 2t ftr' edin h e e. m 'mbt fh {1; i n"and' construetion of the top cover member 21in relation to its shouldered seat 28-49? in t be member i uth tha wh i b s rneniher l0 and top cover member 2i ere assem" tunes shownf inFigures; 2 56 inclusive, the i tei'nl surface of the top cover mernber is flush with the surrounding external surface of its supporting base member.

Suitably secured within the lamp-receiving well i5 of the base member, as by the screws 22, is a partition member 23. This partition member 23 extends transversely across the full width of the well l5 and is transversely curved along its upper edge in correspondence with its transverse curvature of the top covering member 2 I. Preferably, the upper edge of the transverse partition 23 is provided with a fiat rim 24 which serves as a broadened support for a resilient gasket 25 disposed intermediate the partition member 23 and the top cover assembly.

The stop lamp socket I8 is supported in any suitable manner upon a bracket 26* which is adjustably secured to theifloor M of the lampreceiving well by means of the screws 21 projected through elongated slots 28 formed in the base of the bracket. Thus, the bracket is adjustable in a direction extending axially of the lamp socket |8 so as to provide for positional adjustment of the lamp filament. The lamp socket l9, which receives the direction indicating lamp I1, is fixedly mounted in the transverse partition 23 so as to present the lamp forwardly of the partition 23, the lamp I! being thus confined within a chamber separate and distinct from that containing the stop and tail lamp l6. i

The top cover member 2|, as most clearly appears in Figure 7, is provided in its rear portion with a rectangular opening 26 of such substantial size that it is practically coextensive in area with that of the rear compartment in which is housed the lamp IS. The tapered front end portion of the cover member 2| is provided with a pair of oval shaped openings 2'|2'|, which are so arranged relatively to each other that their major axes are divergent rearwardly of the cover. The forward extremities of these openings 2|-2| are rather closely disposed between each other, as shown, so that these openings relatively occupy the positions of a pair of barbs on an arrow.

In addition to the parts herein-before described, the unit of the present invention ineludes a pair of light transmitting panels 28 and 29 formed. of any suitable translucent or transparent material such as glass, plastic or the like. The panel 28 is of generally rectangular form and is curved both longitudinally and transversely to correspond with the contour of the cover member 2|, the marginal edges thereof being depressed as at 30 to provide a marginal flange which is adapted to underlie the member 2| throughout all of the portion thereof which marginally surrounds the opening 26. The central portion of the member 28 thus constitutes, in efiect, a window for the rear portion of the cover member 2| disposed above the compartment in which is housed the lamp l6. If desired, the member28 may be centrally apertured, as at 3|, to receive a jewel or similar light transmitting element 32 for transmitting therethrough the light rays of-the lamp Hi When the latter is operated in normal manner as a tail light. When, however, the lamp I6 is operated as a stop light, light rays of greater intensity are projected therefrom to brightly illuminate not only the jewel 32 but also all of the area of the panel The second light transmitting panel 29is generally of the triangular or semi-oval shape shown in Figure 8 to fit beneath the pointed front @1161 portion of the opaque top cover member 2|, This panel 29, which is also formed of any suitable transparent or translucent material, such as glass, plastic or the like, is provided with a pair of bulbous elements 3333 each of generally elliptical form and relatively arranged to correspond in position with the openings 2|2| of the cover member 2|. The bulbous portions 3333 thus project respectively through the openings 21-21 and provide light transmitting windows therefor through which may be transmitted the light rays emanating from the direction indicating lamp l1. As most clearly appears in Figure 2, the rear edge of the member 29 abuts the front edge of the member 28 along a line disposed in the vertical plane of the partition member 23,-both of these abutting edge portions being thus securely clamped in position between the gasket 25 and the overlying cover member 2 At the same time, the rear marginal flange 30 of the member 28 is clamped between the cover member 2| and the depressed seat 35 formed in the base member ID, with the side edges of the panel members 28 and 29 in abutting engagement with base H], as shown at 36 in Figures 3, land 5. The latter is securely held in position upon the base member ID by means of the securing screws 34.

In use, the unit of the present invention is preferably employed in pairs both at the rear end and at the front ends of the vehicle. When so employed in pairs, one unit of each pair is located at either side of the vehicle with its pointed end facing outwardly and away from the center of the vehicle. Upon energizing the lamp i, the light transmitting windows 33-33 are'illuminated and because of their relative shape and disposition they simulate the head of an arrow to indicate the direction in whichthe vehicle is to turn or be maneuvered. The direction-indicating character of' the illuminated elements 33-33 is considerably enhanced at night when the combination stop and tail lamp I6 is lit due to the fact that the illuminated panel 28 serves as a tail for the directional arrow. The jewel 32 is normally employed only in the case of the rearmounted units, the lamps l6 of the units mounted .upon the front'of the vehicle being of the singlefilament type instead of the double-filament type conventionally employed vin combination stop and tail light signalling devices.

It will :be understood, of ,course, that the present invention is susceptible of various changes and modifications which may be made from time to time without departing from the general principles or real spirit thereof, and it is accordingly intended to claim the same broadly, as well as specifically, as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed as new and useful is:

1. A signalling device for automotive vehicles comprising a main base member of generally elongated form having itsiforward end tapered to form a pointed extremity, said base member being provided at opposite sides thereof with freely extending flangesthe edges of which are adapted to be shaped to the contour of the surface upon which the device is to be mounted, said base member being further provided with a lampreceiving well having a closed bottom wall spaced inwardly of the plane of the edges of said flanges, a transverse partition dividing said well into a pair of separate lamp compartments, light transmitting panels respectively disposed in covering relation to said compartments, and an opaque retaining plate removably mounted u on said base member for marginally securing said panels in light-transmitting position, said retaining plate being provided with openings therein in respective registry with said light transmitting panels whereby to expose the latter for the transmission of light therethrough.

2. In a signalling device of the character defined in claim 1 wherein said retaining plate is provided in the rear portion thereof with a relatively large opening to form a marginal frame for one of said light transmitting panels and in the front portion thereof with a pair of angularly related oval-shaped openings overlying the other of said light transmitting panels whereby to obtain the eifect of a double-headed directionindicating arrow upon the transmission of light through said oval-shaped openings.

3. In a signalling device of the character defined in claim 1 wherein the forward end of said retaining plate is tapered in correspondence with that of the base member and wherein said plate is secured to the base member with its margin-a1 edges substantially flush with the surrounding surfaces of the base member, said forward end portion of the retaining plate being provided with a pair of oval-shaped openings so angularly related that their major axes are rearwardly divergent with respect tothe median plane of the base member, one of said light transmitting panels being fitted beneath said tapered portion of the retaining plate and being provided with a pair of bulbous projections respectively fitting within said angularly related openings.

4. In a signalling device of the character defined in claim 1 wherein said base member and its associated retaining plate for the light transmitting panels are longitudinally curved rearwardly of the forward pointed extremity of the device, and wherein said retaining plate is transversely arched from side to side thereof.

5. A signalling device for automotive vehicles comprising a main base member having a lampreceiving well formed centrally therein, a transversely extending partition member for dividing said well into a pair of separate lamp-receiving compartments, said partition member being provided along its upper edge with a relatively wide rim, a pair of light transmitting panels respectively disposed in covering relation to said compartments with the adjoining edges thereof commonly resting upon said rim, and a retaining plate for said panels secured to said base member and adapted to clamp said adjoining edges of the panels against said rim, said retaining plate having openings through which portions of said panels are exposed, certain of said openings being of such shape and relative disposition as to provi'de the efiect of a double-headed arrow upon vice to supporting surfaces of varying contours.

ERIC B. HALLMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,517,133 Van Bloem Nov. 25, 1924 1,537,288 Beam May 12, 1925 2,221,178 Best Nov. 12, 1940 2,231,429 Simmons Feb. 11, 1941 

